Tommy Smith: Four
With more than 30 albums under his belt as leader and having established and directed the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, Tommy Smith has returned to his archive and decided this is the right time to release Four. Captured in the moment over 25 years ago, the album presents a quartet playing at an incredibly high standard. The recording also has a unique, raw appeal to it as it was captured using a single microphone placed in front of the band and recorded direct to MiniDisc. With no PA, amplifiers or mixing desk involved, Four has a throwback audio appeal, which deadens some of the acoustics and yet at the same time gives the music an energy and presence it would have lost had more modern recording techniques been used.
A 15-minute workout on Miles Davis’s Four sets the album off at a breakneck pace. Smith is so fluid and confident in the higher register of the tenor sax that it almost sounds like he’s playing this one on alto. The lovely, self-penned ballad When I’m All Alone finds Smith sounding like a reflective Ben Webster, using a vibrato on low notes that was so characteristic in Webster’s playing. Overall, this is a wonderfully assured collection of songs, a no-nonsense demonstration of the very best jazz being performed by a quartet that works like a well-oiled machine and is clearly enjoying being in the moment.
The music might have been recorded in Gateshead in 1999, but the quality of the playing and the slightly old-fashioned rawness to the recording can easily transport the listener to Birdland in the 1950s, where giants of the music put out mesmerising performances like this on a nightly basis. It’s a digital release only and those wanting to enjoy this excellent album will need to head to Bandcamp tommysmithsaxophonist.bandcamp.com/album/four
Discography
Four; When I’m All Alone; The Lady Is A Tramp; Secret Love; Mil Dew/Cotton Tail; Some Day My Prince Will Come (65.43)
Smith (ts); Steve Hamilton (p); Orlando Le Fleming (b); Sebastian De Krom (d). Gateshead Art Centre, 1999.
Spartacus Records STS033
Onmo: In Time And Spirit
This is the debut album from London-based jazz ensemble Onmo, led by composer and guitarist Jean de Talhouet. Suffering from the impact of “long Covid”, Talhouet has channelled the experience of living with the condition into Lapse, the nine-minute opener for the album. The track begins with some gentle, melodic guitar before progressing to darker-sounding, exploratory themes, which brings in fellow members of the group. Adaptability, hope, grief and resilience are the emotions explored through the music, giving rise to a combination of some angry, spiky sounds, tempered with more melodic and reflective content as some sort of resolution is reached as the track concludes.
With mention of a range of influences, including John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, funk, hip-hop and Steve Reich, Talhouet certainly brings these eclectic sounds to his compositions to display the nature of Onmo and what it represents. In Time And Spirit – an extended composition presented in three parts, and somewhat confusingly as a whole piece as well in the digital version of the album – offers a combination of lyrical and minimalist content which shows another facet of a band that is clearly keen to explore new musical frontiers whilst acknowledging the importance of past influences.
As important as the sound, Onmo has also paid attention to the visuals for the album. The cover image was taken using a pinhole camera over a four-hour long exposure of four candles rotating on turntables. Striking, but only of real impact for listeners buying the LP version of In Time And Spirit. No CD version is available so those wanting to hear this will need to head to the Clonmell Jazz Social website: clonmelljazzsocial.com/onmo-in-time-and-spirit
Discography
Lapse; Inner Games; In Time And Spirit (Part 1); In Time And Spirit (Part II); In Time And Spirit (Part III); In Time And Spirit (full version) (44.00)
Jonathan Chung, George Crowley (ts); Mike Soper (t); Jean de Talhouet (g); Rupert Cox (p, kyb): Huw V Wiliams (b, elb); Joost Hendrickx (d) Flo Moore (elb). Fish Factory Studios, London, probably 2026.
Clonmell Jazz Social CJS012LP
Pedro Luis Ferrer: La Bunga
Active in Cuban music since 1965, Pedro Luis Ferrer – according to the liner notes for this release – embodies the heart, mind and soul of Cuba. Singer, songwriter, vocalist, composer and poet, and a virtuoso on Spanish guitar, Ferrer is joined by his daughter, Lena, for this album. And what a strange album it is. Breezy and easy on the ear, it has a bright, slightly over-produced feel and sound in its vocals and instrumental arrangements. Both vocals sound as if they have been processed in some way, giving an artificial edge to some of the top notes and harmonies here and there.
Across 14 short songs, none of which lasts more than four minutes or so, Ferrer explores a range of topics related to life, many about food, having a good time, relationships and regrets. Unfortunately, they all sound the same, so any nuance and sense of variety is lost. Sad to say, this all sounds like it has been dashed off very quickly, with the blandness of the music matched with some very weird lyrics. The CD booklet offers an English translation of the material, which includes such gems as “If you don’t eat coconut you’ll lose your wits” (Güirón Del Coco). Hygiene advice on La Mandonga tells the listener “Don’t let your sweaty groin be anybody’s sorrow. And don’t let your armpits brew their smoky tobacco.”
It is hard to take the album seriously, and maybe that’s the point. Frothy and eminently forgettable, La Bunga serves up the kind of music you might encounter from a band of street musicians somewhere hot when you are trying to enjoy a quiet meal and hoping desperately that they soon move on.
Discography
Celebración; Papurrico; Conga Del Pueblo; Soncito; Güirón Del Coco; San Sucé; To Totá; Consciente; La Mandonga; Nengona Mía; Seduction; Son De Medio Peso; Gandinga No; Conguero Al Cielo (43.36)
Ferrer (v, d, kyb, g, p, tim, lute, brass); Lena Ferrer (v, kyb, p, cajón, hand and pedal claves, güiro, güirón). Havana, Cuba and Miami, Florida, 2025.
Dot Time Records DT9196
